Absolute Eosinophil Count

Absolute Eosinophil Count (AEC) is a blood test that measures the number of eosinophils in your body. Eosinophils are a type of disease-fighting white blood cells (WBC) that become active in case of an infection, allergic disease, and drug reaction. The eosinophil count is used to confirm a diagnosis.

The normal eosinophil count is < 500 cells per microliter. If eosinophils levels are increased beyond this, it can be indicative of an autoimmune disease, seasonal allergies, asthma, and parasitic infections. An abnormally low eosinophil count can be the result of intoxication from alcohol or excessive production of cortisol. The low levels of eosinophils are generally not a concern. However, if the other WBC counts are also low, it can signal problems in a person's bone marrow.